‘And the music never stopped’

By KIMBERLY M. WEYANDT

BEACH LAKE, PA — Filling and spilling out of the fire hall parking lot, cars lined Route 6 in Beach Lake on Saturday, January 15 as friends, relatives and complete strangers gathered to celebrate the life of Edwin J. “Taterbug” Tyler, a man who was anything but ordinary.

It was a cold night but the fire hall glowed with a warmth all its own as children, adults and seniors shuffled their way up the ice-covered path, carrying pots and pans in their arms and memories in their hearts.

Inside, live bands, including Taterbug’s own, “The Nobody Band,” kept the music constant as children spun around on the floor. Tables lined the walls and people filled the chairs. In the far corner of the room, a man wearing black pants and a cowboy hat sat on a table, leaning on his cane.

“I danced a great many Friday nights to Tater and his band. I can’t do as much now, but I still like to listen,” he said. His name was James Swendsen and he was Taterbug’s cousin.

“We’re gonna miss him,” Swendsen said with a sad smile. “When he was five and just starting school in September, the doctor said he wouldn’t live to see Santa Claus. He didn’t cry until he got home. He lived a lot longer than anybody thought he would. He’s told me time and time again that doctors don’t know everything.”

In the front of the hall, Garry Tyler, Tater’s brother, spoke to friends and showed off his new tattoo.

“He was my brother but he wasn’t just my brother, he was my best friend,” Garry said.

The music stopped as Rolo, Tater’s cousin, read the winning ticket numbers for the raffles. An old man danced as he held up his prize, a green motorcycle helmet.

A woman sat down. Her name was Mary Hazen. I asked her if she knew Taterbug. She said she didn’t.

“I saw one of his performances,” she said. “My husband and I saw this in the paper and we thought we’d come. I’m from the city and to see this kind of comradery between neighbors just blows my mind.”

The party, which started at 4:00 p.m., lasted until after midnight. Donations were accepted and the Tyler family plans to donate some of the money to EagleFest—an annual event in Narrowsburg that Tater enjoyed—and some of it to carry on Taterbug’s legacy by encouraging others to learn.

“He was an amazing man,” said Nancy Mieretko, Tater’s sister. “He had the heart of six men and he was very giving and very loving. He always instilled in me ‘live now, live for today because you don’t know what tomorrow will bring’.

“And be good to people. I think he lived by that,” she said.

Although Tater’s family had been leery about having the event, the generosity and kindness of everyone that attended made them glad they did.

“It just made us all proud to have known him,” said Mieretko.

“It’s hard losing someone you love, but it’s nice to see how many people really cared. He wasn’t just my brother, he was one of my best friends,” she said.

“We wanted to do something to keep him in mind,” said Garry Tyler.